She’s pushing petals again, that Amy Butler, introducing fabulously feminine and bold wool carpets that are blooming in late August. These are great handcrafted picks for perking up an existing space. You got the sofa, you got the pillows, you got the hot date. Now you need a flirty-perty rug, right?

The new line of 19 patterns in the Amy Butler for Chandra collection borders on the exotic with a modern scale and lively depth of field. If the motifs look familiar, it’s because we’ve shown you her similar bedding designs which smack of India chic. The organic bedding is sold at Bed, Bath and Beyond. The carpets complete the totality of the Butler bedroom.

“I had so much fun designing this line and learning about a whole new industry,” says Butler, otherwise known as the queen of Midwest modern style . “I even got to visit India to see rugs being made and meet the people who make it all happen – it was an amazing experience! I loved seeing each step in the process, the care and detail that goes into each rug is stunning.”

The rugs are 100% handmade from New Zealand Wool and semi-sustainable using no harsh chemical washes, the industry’s safest chrome dyes and natural latex adhesive.

Go to Butler’s site to see a slideshow of the rugs or order a carpet brochure.

I love to sleep. When my head hits the pillow at the end of a day, I’m usually snoozing inside of 10 minutes. I’m also a fan of the cat-nap. In fact anything remotely resembling sleep rests well with me”¦including beds.

A literal luxury in many parts of the world, the bed happens to be my favorite piece of furniture. Sleep, read, nap”¦there’s so much to do in bed. The bed that currently captures the key to my always-eco heart is dreamy. And I mean “seriously in my wildest dreams I just might be able to afford this bed” dreamy.

I’m sharing despite its $6,899 price tag ($7399 for the King), if only to illustrate that eco and luxury are not mutually exclusive.

The Sanaz Bed, by the Italian manufacturer EVVE, is available in all types of fabrics including “ecological leather”. And every single Sanaz Bed is made with eco-friendly wood harvested from sustainable European sources.

If it’s options you’re hungry for, add the Swarovski Crystal buttons to your headboard for an extra $250. If you’re sufficiently intrigued and desire more details, call IQ Matics at 847-885-3600. Or visit the website and chat with one of the salespeople.

via Design Milk

Oh, the places Pottery Barn Kids will go to expand its green line of bedding. It has now traveled to the super silly and wonderful world of Dr. Seuss in offering organic bedding for spring. Drawings from Horton Hears a Whoâ„¢, The Cat in the Hatâ„¢, Fox in Socksâ„¢ and Green Eggs and Hamâ„¢, among others are printed in rich, layered colors on a white cotton percale ground. Made from 100% organic cotton fiber and pre-washed for premium softness, the collection is Oeko-Tex certified.

Ham it up by complementing the bedding with coordinating pillows, decals and artwork. It all makes for a joyful kids’ room and gives us more decorating options which is always appreciated.

Can’t find that sleek, modern piece on Ebay or Craigslist? Are the sales at DWR still too steep? There are plenty of other great deals to be had for those searching for the right piece of modern furniture that fits into their spaces and budgets.

Here are a few stylish finds that keep budget sustainability in mind:

This Reclaimed Oriental Rug (shown at top) rolled out by VivaTerra has the beauty of a hand knotted masterpiece for just $119 for the 6″x9″, a great size for under a coffee table or at the foot of a bed. I love to layer rugs. This one is great for throwing over an inexpensive sisal or sea grass.

The Mid-Century armless sofa from Urban Outfitters is an amazing deal at $550 with strong eco-friendly hardwood finished in a rich walnut stain. The back cushions can be removed to convert the sofa to a comfy daybed. It’s now available in gorgeous shades of blue, green, red and natural. It really works well for a living space moonlighting as your guest toom as it easily converts to a bed.

You can still afford to have breakfast in bed when the bed is the Barbados platform design of sustainbly harvested wood from Eco Furniture, $395 for the queen. I love the light finish but you can also opt for two darker woods, ebony and cordovan. It’s really a good buy if you consider modern platform beds from DWR start at $1500 and go way up from there.

They call these Inhabit fixtures Chump Change and they seem to fit the bill, packing a big stylish punch with a reasonable tag of $168 at Feel More Human.

Styx sang Come Sail Away with Me and we all wanted to jump on board and head for the open sea. Savvy designer David Trubridge jumped on board, as well, when asked by the inventive New Zealand company Okooko to design a bed that challenges how we sleep.

He responded with Float, a seaworthy lounger that will cradle you to sleep for $25,000. I know that sounds outlandish, but it really is a marvel in terms of engineering and beauty. The mostly eco-friendly design, constructed of natural latex, bambo and wool, is framed with sustainably harvested Totara wood, a water resistant timber. (Less lovable acrylic fabric finished in Teflon encloses the base and canopy.)

Trubridge is an avid sailor who has voyaged with his family through the Caribbean and the Pacific. The experience apparently influenced his exploration of sleep when designing his floating cocoon.

“Sleep is a voyage through dreams when we wholly give ourselves up in trust, lying curled up in our bed vessel feeling safe and cosy,” says the designer. “It can be ten minutes in the office, an hour on the lawn or all night in any place we pull our cradle to.”

Float was voted “Best Piece of Bedroom Furniture” in a New Zealand competition that invited designers to explore sleep with functional and fit creations. It’s not surprising given Trubridge’s other impressive home furnishings, including stunning honeycomb light fixtures and modern outdoor rocking chairs.

The word Okooko means “to cradle in arms” in Maori. The company, which sells its products in New Zealand and Hong Kong, recently opened a new store in Philadelphia at 205 Arch Street (215-667-8240). Check out its series of other wonderful eco beds with names like Pause, Fusion, Shift and Drift, all built to lull green landlubbers to sleep.

His side: Self improvement books falling precariously from makeshift bookends and a highball glass half-empty with water; a  CD player and scattered CD’s from The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. A sock he would have thrown in the hamper had he been more present. An urn-shaped lamp with a square white shade. A folded Wall Street Journal marred with tear stains.

Her side: A matching urn lamp; a stylish coral lacquer tissue box sans the tissue; silver framed photos of small girls with chubby cheeks; Book group novels neatly squeezed inside a pair of Chinoisserie bookends. A modern white Ikea clock, the only alarm clock in the house. A printed article on the threats of olive oil farming to Italian ecosystems from EcoSalon. An empty martini glass sans the olive.

Honestly, is there anything we don’t try to crowd onto our nightstands? We want our master bedrooms to look modern and tidy but the goal is undermined when the tables flanking the bed are victims of too many magazines and not enough storage.

I went hunting for eco designs with both great lines and ample storage to manage the overflow.  Will they bring you sweeter dreams? Perhaps…as long as you store a big box of Sees in the drawer!

At Ducduc Furniture savvy nightstands designed for kids’ rooms are sophisticated enough for us grown ups, like the Cabana Nightstand of clean 100% hardwood with non-toxic lacquer or the Morgan Nightstand which offers a modern take on Mission. Both are $495.

The Zurich 3 Drawer Nightstand from Lifestyle Solutions ($370) sits on a low platform and is sooo clean, the drawers don’t even have those messy pulls. I love the shape of the grey Sparrow Nightstand by Oeuf ($380) with one drawer and one exposed shelf. I’d love to station a pair in a tone-on-tone grey room.

Also appearing as if cut from a mod cookie cutter, is the Hiya Nightstand from Spot on Square ($399) with a single, natural wood drawer and an open shelf. I highly recommend locating a cool basket or box to store goodies in that open shelves to keep things neat. Also very cool and looking more expensive than it is, the Modern Nightstand from Urban Outfitters ($150) with so much space it could hold your files.

If you’re in the market for vintage furniture (very green since you’re recycling old style) check out the Scandinavian mid-century models from Metro Retro Furniture ($795). They have gorgeous modern lines, a handsome finish, and several drawers for packing away your bedroom bulk. Don’t forget the coaster for that late night glass of organic soy milk!

You know those cute little herb-filled dream pillows that are supposed to enhance your sleep and dream life? I’ve always been skeptical of those. Sure, they smell nice and they’re adorable, but the practical utilitarian in me always wondered “what’s the point?”

Now a recent German study shows that exposure to pleasant or unpleasant smells while sleeping can actually affect the content of our dreams. Using the scents of rotten eggs or roses, in subtle amounts that wouldn’t wake the sleeper, researchers found that dreams were actually negatively or positively affected.

So maybe there is something to dream pillows, or putting aromatic flower petals in your pillowcase. Apparently our senses are more mysterious than the practical woman in me ever imagined.

Image: Mayr

If it were a practical option, I would kiss my sofas goodbye and replace them with a den of plush cushions. In Decorative Days and Sweet-Scented Nights, Kim dished about her pillow obsession, and I happen to agree that these cozy accents are a simple and inexpensive way to revamp your décor scheme while staying eco-friendly.

Is your living room looking a bit dull these days? No problem! The bright and cheery Chartreuse Star pillow by Ouno artisans at EcoEtsy is the perfect fix. If its lime hue isn’t quite the right shade of green, perhaps the Webbed Seatbelt pillows that Luanne just featured or Dermond Peterson’s geometric True Green collection are better suited to your taste.

Still craving more? Add some contrast with the Modular pillow that Kim recently came across or mix in a touch of nature with the Matisse-Inspired Leafy Applique pillows that Luanne discovered. Once your couches and bed are overflowing with an array of plush pieces, keep them free of dust mites with Kim’s advice about The Proper Way to Wash a Pillow.

Who would have ever imagined the day when Clorox, makers of the ubiquitous chlorine bleach, would come out with a line of eco-friendly cleansers? 

But here they are, 7 Green Works natural products such as bathroom cleanser, dishwashing liquid, and glass  & surface cleaner. Fragrance comes from essential oils, there is no phosphorus or bleach, and cleaning agents are coconut based.
Green Works has been endorsed by both the The Sierra Club and the Design for the Environment Program. It will be very interesting to see over time if Clorox is merely testing the marketing waters or committed to cleaning them.

Modern style sinks in. True, it’s not as powerful as television commercials for cereals and toys on Saturday mornings, but it has an impact nonetheless. Surround your gurgling genius with clean lines, geometric forms and sustainable materials, and before you know it, it’s off to architecture school!

Dr. Spock can’t help with this one but Modern Nursery certainly can. It’s the source I rely on for creating ultra-mod kids’ spaces with furniture like the Uffizi Bunk Beds with cantilevers and window- like openings for $1,850. The orange and brown option is so eco-fabulous, I might even change out my boring California King. Naturally, I would be on top.

Bunk beds have always been oodles of fun for young kids but never this sophisticated. And isn’t that what all savvy, toilet -trained visionaries seek in the bedroom?

The design by Argington is made from sustainable hardwood and birch ply using 100% non-toxic glues, stains and finishes. The good news is the bed grows with your progeny and can convert to a loft bed with a youth desk underneath once he or she is ready to begin those first drafting lessons.